1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of dial-up networking and, more particularly, to reporting problems with dial-up access numbers.
2. Description of the Related Art
Dial-up Internet users access the Internet by establishing a communication link between their home computer and a computing device of an Internet Service Provider (ISP). The communication link occurs across a phone line and is established when the user contacts the ISP computer device via one or more access telephone numbers. Generally, the user will be able to select one of many access number local to the user so that telephone usage charges are minimized.
It is not uncommon for dial-up users to experience problems when connecting to the Internet via an access number. One typical connectivity problem is an end user problem, meaning that the user is experiencing problems with their home computer, which results in the user being unable to establish a connection with the ISP computing device. Another reason that dial-up users are unable to connect to the Internet is that the access number that the user dialed is temporarily malfunctioning. ISPs often provide a means though which users can report problematic access numbers.
Conventional reporting mechanisms suffer one or more deficiencies, making conventional problem reporting inconvenient to dial-up users and/or expensive for the ISPs. One conventional problem reporting technique involves users contacting live ISP agents in a customer service center over a telephone line to report an access problem. It can be very expensive to staff a customer support center with live agents, so as a cost saving mechanism, such support centers are typically minimally staffed. Consequently, wait times for reporting dial-up connectivity problems can be painfully long for concerned users.
This is especially true since a real problem with a dial-up access number will affect a large user population at approximately the same time. A significant portion of these affected users will attempt to contact the customer support center, thereby overloading the call handling capabilities of the customer support center. Notably, the volume of calls received by the customer support center is unnecessary; as only a small number of calls need to be received before the ISP is apprised of the access number problem.
To combat the problem of live-agents being intermittently overloaded with calls, many ISPs have implemented automated response systems. Many of these automated systems are Web or e-mail based. Such systems can be effectively useless to users attempting to report connectivity problems because such problems are focused around to connect to the Internet. Consequently, a user experiencing a problem can lack access to the Web or e-mail based problem reporting tools.
Another automated reporting mechanism commonly used allows dial-up users to leave voice mail messages that contain problem report details. This reporting mechanism, however, generally provides insufficient guidance to the user concerning details necessary to aid the ISP in troubleshooting a problem. Specifically, voice mail reports leave out critical information such as the problematic access control number, the symptoms the user experienced (that allow the ISP to determine if the problem is an end-user problem or one related to an access number), or the like. Further, dial-up users are often unsatisfied with leaving a voice messages, as such systems provide inadequate feedback. Users reporting problems via a voice message, therefore, often report the same problem to a live customer service representative, when one is available; again resulting in a customer support center being overloaded with calls each time a dial-up access number malfunctions.